Is it normal to start gaining weight before losing it?

lovexlexi

I've been staying a bit under my daily calorie goal and exercising every day and yet I've gone up a few points of a pound rather than losing it. It's been fluctuating day to day. Kinda discouraging when you're trying so hard to lose weight and your numbers are only going up. Hopefully when I join the gym it'll help me really start to lose weight. Maybe these home workouts I'm doing aren't doing as much as I think they are or maybe I'm not doing enough of it. I really don't know. Any advice?

Ninkyou

It can be, yes. If you've just started exercising, you could be retaining water for muscle repair, which can easily mask weight loss.

Advice: Have patience and give it more time. Keep doing what you were doing and you'll see results.

Jolinia

If you just started exercising you could be holding water weight from that.

ReveBriser

I don't know if it's normal, but I had the same thing happen to me when I started exercising again. I kept with it and after a week or so it came right off. I can't say this is how it's supposed to go though.

Jolinia

There needs to be a sticky at the top in huge letters titled If you just started exercising, gaining water weight is normal!

Someone make it so.

diannethegeek

It's normal for weight to fluctuate from day to day and it's fairly common to see a little stall or gain when you first start exercising (it's water weight, as said above). That should go away in 2-3 weeks.

If you want to be sure that you're doing the right things, make sure you're logging as accurately as you can and check back in a couple of weeks.

lovexlexi

Yeah I've only been at this for about a week now. I started working out and tracking my calories last week at 165.0 pounds and a week later I am now 165.4 pounds. I just didn't understand how me being more active and watching what I eat would cause me to gain more weight. Thank you for your replies though. I'm hoping it's just the water weight problem you're talking about.

missiontofitness

kirkmana94 wrote: »

Yeah I've only been at this for about a week now. I started working out and tracking my calories last week at 165.0 pounds and a week later I am now 165.4 pounds. I just didn't understand how me being more active and watching what I eat would cause me to gain more weight. Thank you for your replies though. I'm hoping it's just the water weight problem you're talking about.

I can "gain" up to 5lbs in a day from normal fluctuations, and suddenly it's gone a day or two later. Don't sweat the small stuff. If your daily fluctuations are going consistently in the wrong direction, and do so for an extended period of time (I'm talking multiple weeks to months), then you need to take a look at your intake and exercise, and making sure you aren't eating too much, or overestimating your calorie burns.

snowy0wl

I concur with the weighing. I've been doing fantastically but I know all to well the scale is likely off my 5%, my weight will fluctuate. My body content of fat and muscle will be all over the place. The only way to know if you are loosing weight is to average out your weigh in a on a weekly basis.

This is why it's very important to be consistent and aware what you are doing(logging). If you don't they become gaping holes where thousands of calorie s can be injected for sake of things like a cheat day.

this is a lifestyle change you need to adapt or your diet will end up forgotten with more detrimental effects of yo yo dieting.

techie30

I only weigh myself once a week, sometimes twice, sometimes every 2 weeks. Fluctuations can discourage me if I weigh myself every day, so I prefer to hop on the scale less often to see more loss if that makes sense. I didn't notice a change until a few weeks in, lijely due to water retention and muscle growth.

vmsolko

Ninkyou wrote: »

It can be, yes. If you've just started exercising, you could be retaining water for muscle repair, which can easily mask weight loss.

Advice: Have patience and give it more time. Keep doing what you were doing and you'll see results.

I wholeheartedly agree. I've had this happen a few times when I started buckling down on increasing the intensity of my workouts. It took about 2 weeks for my body to adjust and shed the "gained" weight. And when that water retention left, so do a couple more pounds. Give it some time.

Also, I have been doing MFP and working out for almost 10 months. I have never worked out in a gym (the nearest one is 30+ miles away, so it isn't an option for me). I have a small weight set (2-8 lbs) and work out only using free online fitness sites and videos - lots of HIIT with weights. I've lost 32 lbs so far and have 8 more to go to hit my goal of a healthy BMI. You CAN do this at home. You don't need fancy gym equipment or shakes or expensive food plans. You can do this with MFP and dedication! Good luck to you!

mjzmb

I appreciate this info too. I've been watching food intake and have been going to gym four days a week, but I have a 3 lb wt gain too. It is the pits.